WHY IT RATES: IGLTA gets a couple more partners to help fight for inclusiveness and safety for LGBTQ travelers in Europe.-Michael Schottey, TravelPulse Director of Digital Content
The International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association united with The European Travel Commission and the Flemish tourist board VISITFLANDERS to present the Educational Forum on LGBTQ Tourism at the Hilton Brussels Grand Place on 21 June.
The event provided a preview of key findings from The Handbook on LGBTQ Tourism in Europe, scheduled for release next month as a joint research project from ETC and the IGLTA Foundation. Forum speakers also addressed ways to make Europe safer and more inclusive for LGBTQ travelers, shared best practices for reaching the diverse segments of this market, and discussed the future evolution of LGBTQ tourism in Europe.
"We are proud to be a partner of ETC's first event and publication on the LGBTQ travel market and to engage many of our European members in this important discussion," said IGLTA President/CEO John Tanzella, who delivered opening remarks at the forum along with VISITFLANDERS CEO & ETC President Peter De Wilde.
"While Europe is a global leader for the LGBTQ market segment, not every country is equal in its LGBTQ inclusiveness-and the research clearly showed that inclusive destinations have the best opportunity to attract diverse visitors."
Handbook author Peter Jordan presented the first look at this soon-to-be-released research, which focuses on perceptions of 35 states within Europe from LGBTQ travelers in five long-haul markets: Russia, China, Japan, Brazil and the United States. An open-minded culture topped the list of reasons for LGBTQ travelers to select a destination and LGBTQ events were the leading choice for their next visit to Europe.
"More tolerance, respect, and understanding are the basic principles for Europe to become the ultimate inclusive tourism destination worldwide," said ETC Executive Director Eduardo Santander. "We are very proud to see from the results of the study and the discussions today that Europe is seen as a highly desirable travel destination for the LGBTQ segment. But we know that we should not be complacent as there is still room for improvement. ETC remains committed to this goal, and events like the Educational Forum are a step in the right direction."
Forum speakers represented tourism businesses, human rights organizations, and media, including Thomas Bachinger, Vienna Tourist Board; Mattej Valencic, Luxury Slovenia; Mateo Asensio, Turisme de Barcelona; Paulien De Groot, transgender activist; Anna Shepherd, ILGA Europe; Patrick Bontinck, visit Brussels; Kaspars Zalitis, Baltic Pride; and Sean Howell of Hornet.
"We want to see Flanders evolving towards a society in which sexual orientation will never be a question nor issue," said De Wilde, who also moderated a panel discussion on communicating diversity to the industry and travelers with journalists from DIVA in the UK, blu media group in Germany and Out & About in Denmark. "On the contrary, we want the LGBTQ traveler to be treated with integrity and respect. VISITFLANDERS will continue to break down barriers and will focus on promoting inclusive tourism."
The Handbook on LGBTQ Tourism in Europe is scheduled for release on 12 July and will be available for free download at iglta.org/research. Photos of the event are available on the IGLTA Business Facebook page or by contacting [email protected].
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.
Topics From This Article to Explore
